Wilkie Collins

Wilkie Collins (1824-1889) is best known as the innovator of the English detective novel, whose sensational novels, plays, and short stories were hugely popular in the Victorian Era. Today, readers enjoy Collins' intricate and suspenseful plots, and his penetrating social commentary on the plight of women and domestic issues of the time. Unfortunately Collins suffered from rheumatic gout, for which he took the opiate laudanum, and which eventually...

A remote castle in Wales inhabited by three older men is the last place on earth that a young, lively girl of 18 would want to spend time. And yet, when forced by circumstances to take up residence there for six weeks prior to coming of age, Jessie surprises them all by finding immense enjoyment in the experience and by capturing each of her adopted uncles' hearts. As the time grows near for her to return to England, the three brothers find it necessary...

A prolific author of the Victorian era, Wilkie Collins (1824–89) specialized in tales of suspense. The forerunners of today's detective and suspense fiction, his best-known works include The Moonstone and The Woman in White. The six short stories of After Dark ― tales of murder, mystery, and family drama ― originally appeared in the periodical Household Words, which was published by Collins's friend and fellow storyteller Charles Dickens. The...

Man and Wife Wilkie Collins - The novel has a complex plot, which is common in Collins's work.[3] In the Prologue, a selfish and ambitious man casts off his wife in order to marry a wealthier and better-connected woman by taking advantage of a loophole in the marriage laws of Ireland. The initial action takes place in the widowed Lady Lundie's house in Scotland. Geoffrey Delamayn has promised marriage to his lover Anne Silvester (governess to Lady...

A groundbreaking detective story by the celebrated author of The Moonstone When Valeria Brinton marries Eustace Woodville, both families object strongly. Before long, Valeria realizes that they may have been right to voice their concerns. Eustace, it seems, is living under an assumed name. This alone would be enough to rouse his new bride's suspicions, but worse still, she discovers that he stood trial for the murder of his 1st wife! Although Eustace...

Madonna, the Queen of Pop, was not the first to be named in honour of the graceful Madonna in art. The focal point of this novel, Mary, is affectionately known as "Madonna" on account of her beauty. Moreover, Mary is both deaf and dumb: "Hide and Seek" is a bold and thrilling Victorian novel that reflects on disability in a positive light. Mary was adopted from a circus by Lavinia – who also has a disability – and Valentine Blyth. That circus...

A giant diamond stolen from India; a rakish rogue; a naive teenager and a drug-fueled scandal. These are the leading parts that combine to make one of the greatest detective novels of all time. 'The Moonstone' by Wilkie Collins laid many of the foundations for the detective genre. At heart, though, it is a great story. Rachel Verinder inherits a large Indian diamond on her 18th birthday. It turns out to have been stolen from India by her corrupt uncle...

"The Fallen Leaves" is a British garage rock group that formed in Richmond, London in 2004. Their most commercially successful release was 2013's "If Only We'd Known" with their top hit being "Against the Grain" according to Spotify. And why this "American Psycho"-esque music monologue in the middle of a Wilkie Collins book description you might ask? Because this novel's protagonist, Amelius Goldenheart, might just be the original flamboyant lady...

"Little Novels" isn't quite a "Little Women" spin-off, as the title might suggest. While you won't be treated to Timothée Chalamet, you will be treated to fourteen short stories – or little novels (ah now the title makes sense). Wilkie Collins loved writing thrillers about characters proposing marriage who get caught up in dramatic circumstances and must solve a mystery. The thrilling mystery-solving element is the foundations of modern detective...

"You don't have to put on the red light", as Sting sings – except this female main character, Mercy Merrick, comes to that conclusion herself. Originally written as a play, "The New Magdalen" is a classic Victorian sensation novel, highlighting the prejudices against a woman of the streets in English society. Mercy is at the frontline of the war in France when she meets Grace Roseberry, a traveller who is returning to England to connect with her...